"I don't recall inviting you to town, dog." Krysanthea added. “Hrmmmm. You look like you rolled in the dirt. Did you try to break into the restaurant?”

  “I did,” Nessy growled. “Your damned sisters threw me out and threatened to slice me to bits if I came back. I’ve been pacing around the building, trying to sniff another way in.”

  “Don’t think I won’t lock you up if you keep disobeying me,” Kristi said sharply at the husky. “Why must you interrupt official ranger business with your dogged clinginess?”

  "Official ranger business?" Nessy echoed, her words dripping with derision. "Is that what we're calling kidnapping and dinner dates now? Real professional, your lizardness."

  Krysanthea's face twitched with barely contained irritation. "You were explicitly instructed to remain at the campsite—"

  "And you were explicitly told that Alec and I are a package deal," Nessy shot back, her fluffy tail bristling behind her. "Or did that detail conveniently slip your cold-blooded mind?"

  “I’m warm blooded, you idiot,” The raptor's clawed hand flexed at her side. "You're really testing my patience, dog."

  "And you're testing the limits of my restraint, bird! You might be warm-blooded but your soul is clearly ice-cold!”

  I watched them circle each other with words, rapidly escalating beyond petty sniping. There was something primal in their postures, in the way their bodies tensed for conflict—something that transcended the civilized veneer of their human-like forms.

  "You think you have some claim on him? Some special right?" Krysanthea's voice dropped to a dangerous register. "He's not even your Alec!"

  "And he's not yours either!" Nessy snarled. "So back off with your fancy dresses and your ostentatious family dinners and your raptor mafia godfather bull—"

  Both of their muscles coiled, looking like they were about to maul each other out in public.

  "Enough!"

  The word left my mouth with unexpected force, cutting through their argument like a blade. Both women turned to me, momentarily startled into silence by the sharpness in my voice.

  "I am so fucking done with whatever this is!" I continued, each word sharp with irritation, "with being treated like a prize to be won. With being pulled in two directions by people who claim to care about me but refuse to listen to what I actually want."

  “Alec,” Kristi spun to me.

  “No!” I snarled. “You basically blackmailed and dragged me into a date! You’re pretty much abusing your authority as a ranger!”

  “It… it wasn’t a date! I just… I did what the door told me! That was the price of getting out… to find you,” Kristi seemed to fold at that. Nessy grinned, tail wagging.

  “And you,” I glared at the husky-girl. "Always rushing headfirst after me, even at the risk of being pounded into the dirt! Has it occurred to you that maybe I wanted to learn more… find out about what happened here four years ago? Next time they might seriously hurt you, Ness! These… raptors aren’t messing around!”

  Their expressions shifted almost in unison—surprise, then a flicker of shame, quickly masked.

  The [Y/N] System message persisted, the companion allegiance offer from Krysanthea waiting for my response, floating above her head.

  In that moment of clarity, watching these two powerful women reduced to squabbling over me like children fighting over a toy, something crystallized in my mind.

  "Yes," I said aloud, staring at the System’s offer of a raptor companion.

  [Companion Allegiance Accepted! The Monster Slayer of Ferguson - Krysanthea Liss Strand has joined your party! Achievement Unlocked: "Double Trouble" - Successfully form bonds with two pradavarians who hate each other but want to jump your bones. Domestic complexity factor increased by 54%.]

  Krysanthea's eyes widened, a smile of triumph blooming across her scaled features. Beside her, Nessy's expression crumpled, hurt and betrayal flashing across her canine face like summer lightning.

  "What did you just do?" Nessy whispered, her voice cracking. "Alec, how could you...?"

  "I accepted her companion allegiance," I stated simply. "Just as I accepted yours."

  "BUT WHY?!" Nessy howled, the sound raw with pain.

  Krysanthea, meanwhile, was practically vibrating with barely contained elation, feathers fluttering as she bounced slightly on her digitigrade feet. "Excellent decision," she declared. "The Strand family's resources and I am now at your disposal."

  I turned away from both of them, walking deliberately toward the ranger cruiser parked at the curb. Reaching the vehicle, I opened the back door and turned to face them.

  "In," I commanded, gesturing to the back seat. "Both of you."

  They hesitated, exchanging wary glances.

  "Now,” I slipped onto the back seat myself.

  Something in my tone—perhaps the edge of barely suppressed fury—compelled them to comply. They approached cautiously, like animals sensing a shift in established dynamics. Krysanthea slid in first, taking the left of the back seat. Nessy followed reluctantly, sitting on my right.

  "Close the door," I instructed, and the two girls complied, sealing us in the intimate confines of the vehicle.

  For a moment, we sat in loaded silence. Me, feeling like a sandwich between two alien beasts. On my left, Nessy radiated hurt and confusion, her fur bristling with agitation. On my right, Krysanthea emanated smug satisfaction.

  "Let me be perfectly clear," I finally said, my voice quiet but firm. "The local Alec obviously made a critical error. He ran away from a particular… situation instead of addressing it head-on. He chose one of you over the other, creating a wound that's clearly still festering years later."

  I turned slightly, meeting each of their gazes in turn. "I am not him. I will NOT make his mistakes."

  "What are you saying?" Nessy asked, her voice small. “I don’t understand. Why…”

  "I'm saying that I don't belong exclusively to either of you," I replied. "I don't know either of you well enough to make that or any kind of commitment."

  Krysanthea's satisfaction dimmed slightly. "But you accepted my allegiance offer. I saw silver letters in my eyes, just like on the day of Systemfall!”

  "I did," I agreed. "Just as I accepted Nessy's pack bond. But these connections don't grant either of you ownership of me."

  I leaned back against the seat, feeling the weight of their attention, their expectations. "So, instead of running from this, I'm choosing to manage it. We're going to coexist. Cooperate. Work together to protect Ferguson and complete whatever quests the System has in store."

  Nessy made a small, wounded sound in her throat. "You want us to... share you?"

  "I want you both to respect me enough to stop treating me like a chew toy to be won," I corrected. "I want you to acknowledge that your constant fighting is counterproductive and, frankly, exhausting for me."

  "But I found you first," Nessy whispered, her voice catching on the words. "I crossed worlds to find you."

  "And I've pledged my family's resources to your cause!" Krysanthea countered, though her usual confidence had muted somewhat.

  "And I appreciate both of those things," I said. "But they don't entitle either of you to dictate my relationships or decisions."

  I exhaled slowly, feeling the tension in my shoulders gradually releasing. "We have bigger concerns than this triangle and the eternal one-upping you’re both into. Slimes in Birchwood. The safety of Ferguson. Flying monsters. The night sky being fucking purple and covered in moon bits and pieces! The System's plans for us. We need to work together, not waste energy fighting each other.”

  I took an intake of air.

  “I’m ordering you to stop bickering and I’m enforcing this order with whatever-the-fuck the ‘Pack Leader’ skill is. You’re both in my pack now and that’s that. Deal with it. Cooperate. Respect each other! Stop fighting over me!”

  The silence that followed my words was so absolute that I could hear the soft rustling of Krysanthea's feathers as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

  "But, Alec—" Nessy began timidly. “She’s…”

  “Don’t care.”

  “Me? She’s the one that…” Kristi began.

  “Also don’t care.”

  Both of their expressions soured.

  "I care about you, Nessy," I said, turning to the husky-girl. "More than I probably should after just a few days. Your loyalty, your... exuberance. The way you throw yourself completely into everything you do. It matters to me."

  Her tail gave a hesitant thump against the seat, hope flickering across her features like the first ray of dawn breaking through storm clouds.

  I turned to the raptor-girl next, whose amber eyes met mine with guarded calculation.

  "And you," I continued. "Your determination. Your sense of duty. Your authority and strength. The way you're protecting this town, keeping it orderly and clean of Systemfall monsters. That matters too."

  Her feathers rose slightly, a subtle tell of emotion I was beginning to recognize.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  "But this constant competition between you is ridiculous," I said. "It's pointless. I’m not your Alec. I died yesterday falling into conceptual liminality like some sort of IRL Schrodinger's cat. So, as someone who’s at times neither alive nor dead, I choose neither of you and also both of you. Deal with it.”

  The silence was deafening.

  “I need friends and allies,” I said. “Not your double-shark circling around me while constantly nipping at each other. Can you give me that? Please? Nessy—I need you to stop fighting Kristi. Also, I need you to chill and not rush after me when I’m clearly not in any danger. Kristi—I need you to deal with your family, I don’t want Nessy to get her kneecaps broken because of their assumptions about who I am and whom I’m dating."

  Surprisingly, it was Krysanthea who broke first.

  "I... apologize," she said, the words sounding slightly wobbly, as if pulled from some rarely accessed vocabulary. "My behavior has been... unprofessional. I, erm, got too deep into my childhood rivalry with Paws, and keep falling into a particularly unsightly pattern. I… I’ll talk to my sisters.”

  I looked at Nessy.

  “You're my pack leader,” she said. “I will obey your order and try to be more tolerant of… Kristi if that is what is required of me.”

  She sounded heartbroken. I sighed.

  “Do you wish me to stay at my place?” The husky asked with the same dejected tone.

  Kristi's feathers went up at this, eyes lighting up. It looked like she was definitely going to capitalize on this husky defeat, potentially by inviting herself into the RV for ‘a cup of tea’.

  "No," I said firmly, looking between them. "We can all stay at the campsite. Together.”

  "What?!" both pradavarians exclaimed in unison, then glared at each other for the synchronicity.

  "You heard me," I continued. "If we're going to form an effective Quest-completing team, we need to learn to coexist. The Airstream has enough space for three people who are committed to making it work. If anything, we can put up a tent outside for Kristi connected to the entrance.”

  “A tent?” The raptor sputtered. “You expect me to live in a tent?!”

  “Together?!” The husky barked.

  “Together,” I smiled, a devious plan forming in my head. “And if you want to keep smothering me in your husky ways, then you must offer Kristi the same as is pack tradition, Ness.”

  “What?!” Nessy’s eyes widened.

  “From this moment on if you want to lick my face,” I said. “You're going to have to lick Kristi's face first. In fact I will permit as many licks as you desire as long as they are given to our lick-deprived packmate first.”

  Krysanthea's feathers fluttered with what might have been indignation. "That's hardly appropriate—”

  “I've been putting up with her and so will you now,” I said. “Learn to win while losing.”

  The girls stared at each other in abject shock for about a minute. Then something seemed to snap in Nessy. She climbed over me, tongue out.

  "Don't you dare—" Krysanthea began, pressing herself against the car door as far as she could go.

  "Pack tradition!" Nessy declared with manic glee, lunging forward with dog energy. "Face licks for everyone!"

  What followed was a chaotic tangle of limbs, feathers, and fur as Krysanthea tried desperately to evade Nessy's determined tongue. The raptor's dignified composure shattered completely as she squawked and flailed, her scaled hands pushing at Nessy's muzzle while her tail whipped back and forth in distress.

  "Get off me, you deranged, tongue-shovel canine!" she shrieked, her voice pitched higher than I'd ever heard it.

  "Nope! The pack demands closeness!" Nessy replied, somehow managing to dart past Krysanthea's defenses to deliver a swift, slobbery lick across her cheek. "Mmmm, tastes like superiority complex and bird seed!"

  "What?! I do NOT eat bird seed!" Krysanthea sputtered, her feathered crest fully extended in alarm.

  I couldn't help it—the absurdity of the situation finally broke through my frustration, and I burst out laughing. The sight of these two formidable predators—one a serious, professional ranger in a fancy starlit dress, the other a determined husky with her tongue hanging out—locked in this ridiculous struggle was possibly the funniest and most absurd thing I'd seen since my bathtub rebirth.

  "You think this is funny?!" Krysanthea demanded, still trying to fend off Nessy's advances.

  "Hilarious, actually," I managed between fits of laughter.

  "Ha! He laughed!" Nessy crowed triumphantly, pausing her assault momentarily. "I win this round!"

  "This isn't a competition!" Krysanthea snapped, straightening her now-rumpled dress only to get face-licked again. “Staph! No! Down, you mangy beast!”

  "Everything's a competition with you two," I pointed out, wiping tears of mirth from my eyes. "I've just flipped the rules to something more entertaining for me."

  Nessy grinned, her canines flashing in the dim light. "I can work with these rules… I think," She turned to Krysanthea with renewed purpose. "Ready for round two, feather face?"

  "Touch me again and I'll pluck every hair from your tail," the raptor threatened.

  “Oi,” I said. “Be nice to our doggo packmate.”

  Kristi glared at me.

  “Touch,” the husky went for a third face lick.

  “Nazareth damn it, what did I just say?! What’s it gonna take for you to stop slobbering all over me?”

  “Mmmm… nothing,” Nessy said. “I need to invest in more current licks for future licks.”

  “What?! I’m not your lick-bank! Alec! Tell her to stop!”

  “Nah.”

  “What do you mean nah?! Aleeeeecccccc!”

  “Pack powah!” Nessy declared, issuing a fourth lick.

  "Enough!" the raptor snarled, amber eyes flashing. She grabbed onto Nessy pushing her down. I slid to the far end of the car seat, watching their power struggle with half-suppressed laughter.

  Nessy, rather than being intimidated by Krysanthea's display of dominance, seemed to interpret it as an invitation to escalate. Her clawed fingers found the raptor's sides, digging in.

  "What are you—" Krysanthea's indignant question transformed mid-sentence into a new sound—a strangled, undignified squawk of laughter.

  "Ticklish, are we?" Nessy grinned wickedly, her blue eyes sparkling with mischievous delight as she continued her assault on Krysanthea's vulnerable sides.

  "S-stop that immediately!" the raptor demanded between involuntary giggles, her scaled body twisting as she tried to escape Nessy's relentless fingers. "This is—this is beneath the dignity of—STOP! Aha-ha-ha-ha, noooo!"

  "You know what they say about raptors," Nessy teased, somehow managing to find every sensitive spot with uncanny accuracy. "All prehistoric majesty until someone finds their weak spot!"

  “No, how… what?! Eeeeee!”

  “I’m sniffing out your weaknesses,” Nessy revealed. “With Scrutiosmia.”

  “W-ha-hah-what?!”

  “Magic nose.”

  Their tussling intensified, a tangle of fur and feathers, scales and claws. What had begun as antagonism was transforming into something else—still competitive, still intense, but with an undercurrent of play that hadn't been there before.

  "I will end you, dog!" Krysanthea threatened breathlessly, her usually immaculate feathers now completely disheveled.

  "Big talk from someone who squeaks like a chew toy when tickled," Nessy retorted, dodging Krysanthea's half-hearted swipe.

  The raptor finally managed to capture both of Nessy's wrists in one clawed hand, pinning them above the husky's head. "Got you!" she declared triumphantly, her chest heaving with exertion.

  "Never!" Nessy declared, leaning forward to deliver a final, slobbery surprise lick directly to Krysanthea's entire snout.

  The look of absolute shock on the raptor's face was priceless—eyes wide, feathers standing on end, her entire body frozen.

  “You… you…” she let out indignantly, panting. “That's it! I’m going to effing kill you…”

  “Stats,” I said.

  Silver lines traced themselves between us in a V pattern. Numbers flashed into existence above both of the girls. Kristi’s gold-amber eyes focused on the numbers above Nessy’s head.

  Then, to my surprise, Krysanthea did something I wouldn't have thought possible. She laughed. Not a dignified chuckle or a sardonic snort, but a genuine, full-bodied laugh that seemed to bubble up from somewhere deep and rarely accessed.

  "You know, you are the most insufferable, boundary-challenged creature I have ever encountered," she told Nessy, releasing her wrists.

  "Thank you," Nessy replied proudly, as if it were the highest compliment. She slid from beneath the raptor and licked me, tail wagging.

  “How do you even know how to breathe? One intelligence? Seriously, dog? I didn’t think you were that dumb.”

  “Mmmm… according to the Mini-Mart Archmage, the numbahs don’t correlate to physical aspects, but soul capabilities,” Nessy pointed out.

  “So your soul is stupid? That’s what you’re saying?” Kristi arched an eyebrow.

  “My soul is full of caring and loyalty, you feathered menace! Have you seen your own stats?”

  “My own… what… oh.”

  The silver letter window slid off Kristi’s head towards her wrist.

  | Name: Krysanthea Liss Strand

  | Age: 25 [soul] / 23 [body]

  | Species & Subtype: Pradavarian - Velociraptor

  | Core Affinity: Fallbeast Slayer [Cursed]

  | Level: 10 [-10]

  | Health: 63/100% | Corruption Perception: 12/100%

  | Strength: 127 [-65]

  | Agility: 119 [-65]

  | Dexterity: 96 [-65]

  | Vitality: 88 [-65]

  | Charisma: 78 [-65]

  | Foresight: 22 [-22]

  | Intelligence: 126 [-65]

  | Wisdom: 67 [-65]

  | Skills: [Taintsense], [Fallbeast Slayer]

  | Afflictions: [Highway 69 Dungeon Soul Damage - 65 loops], [Apeirophobia]

  “Level ten minus ten? So… you’re below me at level zero? Why? What’s Apeirophobia? Why are your stats so high and also iffy? What’s the Highway 69 Dungeon? How are you twenty five and twenty three?” The waterfall of questions poured out of Nessy as she too read the lines.

  Krysanthea's feathers flattened against her body, her amber eyes suddenly distant. For a moment, the confident predator disappeared, replaced by something wounded and raw. Then, like a door slamming shut, her expression hardened.

  "That's… classified information," she said, her voice tight.

  "But—" Nessy began.

  “She went looking for Alec and got stuck in a dungeon,” I said. “A highway where time is looped in two week intervals. Looks like it chewed on her for two years. Sixty five loops of two weeks each, right? That’s 130 weeks or 2.49 years. Dang.”

  My words seemed to break whatever mental strength Kristi had left, snapped whatever was holding her together. The raptor-girl folded up and buried her face in her hands, trembling and suddenly looking very small.

  “Hey, hey,” Nessy sat up and wrapped Kristi in her embrace. “It’s okay… Kristy. You’ll catch up to me in no time at all, I bet!”

  “You went out earlier than me…. right after Systemfall when things weren't as bad,” Kristi sniffed. “You went out earlier and you actually found Alec and I got bogged down in that hellish place for so long… so very, very long…”

  “Oh! We should have gone together,” Nessy said. “That way we could have found him twice as fast. We should have worked together from the start!”

  “That… that’s not helping.” Kristi shook her head.

  “I’m sorry,” Nessy’s hug intensified. “I’m sorry for what you had to endure all alone out there. I won’t fight you anymore! Alec has chosen both of us as his pack! I’ll help you with whatever this soul-damage is, however I can… promise, promise!”

  "I'd rather not discuss my... condition or the highway," Krysanthea said after a moment, blinking tears out of her eyes. "Especially not here… where someone I know might come out and see me like this… please let go… so I can drive us… to the park.”

  Nessy let go of the raptor-girl. Krysanthea wiped her face with a feathery elbow and readjusted her face back to the stern officer. She opened the door and sat in the front. The car took off before we could even buckle ourselves, racing out of the restaurant parking lot towards the forest.

  . . .

  As we drove back through Ferguson's darkened streets, I couldn't shake the image of Krysanthea's stats from my mind. It seems that dungeons fed on levels and skills, gradually devoured human souls. I would have to approach the local dungeon very carefully in that case, make sure not to get stuck inside.

  The silence in the car wasn't comfortable, but it wasn't hostile either. It was the silence of people processing, adjusting, recalibrating their understanding of one another.

  Beside me, Nessy's paw found my hand, her claws gentle against my skin. Her blue eyes carried questioning concerns. I squeezed her hand in silent reassurance and she leaned against me with a soft exhale.

  In the rearview mirror, Krysanthea's amber eyes flickered briefly to us, but she said nothing. Her gaze returned to the road, her profile illuminated by violet, alien starlight as we left the town behind, heading up the winding valley road and toward the waiting Airstream.

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